My Know-It-All Nemesis - Maggie Dallen Page 0,21

glimpse of it. A taste of how Miller and his buddies saw me.

Freak.

The word kept me company all night and into the next day.

Freak.

I walked through the halls with my usual friendly smile, saying hello to the same students, the same teachers, the same administrative staff.

Except that today it all felt different because…freak.

Was that how they saw me? I knew that Tim did, at least.

If I were being honest, I didn’t care one fig what Tim Pfeiffer thought. I didn’t care if he thought of me as his friend or not.

But Miller…

Did Miller think I was a freak? He hadn’t denied it. The fact that he hadn’t protested shouldn’t have stung so badly. I shouldn’t have expected anything else.

I didn’t expect anything from Miller Hardwell.

I certainly didn’t expect him to stick up for me.

I shut my eyes as I stood in front of my locker, the memory of Miller’s confrontation with Tim crashing into me. The mere thought of him standing up to his teammate over that stupid poster…I shook my head to rid myself of the thought.

I didn’t know what to make of that interaction, so I wouldn’t stew over it. Had he done that for me? Maybe he just didn’t like Tim. Maybe he was afraid Tim’s prank would get him in trouble with Mr. Gentry.

But then again…he’d sounded genuinely, honestly, pissed on my behalf.

Had that been real?

It had felt real.

Confusion made my belly twist and my heart pound. What did it mean that he was sticking up for me? Me, the girl who’d been nothing but competitive and snide every time we interacted.

I shook my head. Nope, it was easier to focus on the insult. Freak. That I could handle. It was annoying, yes, and hurtful, for sure…but it didn’t rattle me to my core.

“Hey, Kate, glad I caught you.”

I looked over to see Mia Jackson standing beside my locker. Her features crinkled up in concern when I turned to face her. “You okay, Kate?”

I swallowed and forced my smile back in place. Always cheerful, that was me. “Of course. What can I do for you, Mia?”

But I already knew. Mia had been trying to get a spot on the newspaper for ages now, and while I was friendly with the newspaper crowd, I had zero pull when it came to who they allowed in.

“I was thinking…” she said. “If you could give me an exclusive on what’s really going on between you and Miller Hardwell—”

No way. I slammed my locker shut. “Sorry, Mia. I’d love to help, but—”

“Oh, come on,” she continued. “There’s got to be a story here. I mean, last year you two were at each other’s throats, and now you’re all buddy-buddy and hosting a party together?”

Her expression was filled with disbelief, and I couldn’t blame her. I was still in disbelief myself. I shrugged. “Sorry to disappoint, but there’s no big conspiracy theory here. Mr. Gentry ordered us to play nice, so that’s what we’re doing.”

I started to walk away, but I should have known she wouldn’t give up so easily. “But this party—”

“Didn’t they already assign someone to cover the special election?” I interrupted.

Her pursed lips were all the answer I needed. They had, and it wasn’t her…and she wasn’t pleased.

She recovered quickly. “I’d like to take a different angle. More of a behind-the-scenes exposé.” Her words were coming out rushed as she hurried along beside me, trying to keep pace at my side despite the crowds we were squeezing past. “This party, for example—”

“You should come,” I interrupted, tossing a smile over my shoulder and ignoring her scowl as I slipped around the corner and into my next class.

I wished my thoughts were as easy to shake off as Mia had been. She’d be back, I knew she would, but I’d worry about her when I had to. Right now, I was too busy thinking over everything I’d overheard. Everything Miller had said, and all he hadn’t said…

I had questions.

So. Many. Questions.

Unfortunately, so did everyone else in this school. And they were all aimed at me. The biggest one was about my costume, which should have been an easy answer, right? I’d picked out my costume, so I had nothing left to worry about.

Right?

Wrong. I couldn’t stop thinking about what Daphne had said, and by the time I rushed through my front door after school, I already had her on speakerphone.

“This is an emergency,” I said as I sprinted up the stairs. My mom would still be at work, so